July 23, 2021 - Sun and heat over Ireland and the United Kingdom
Follow @NASA_MODIS
UK and Ireland
Tweet
Share
Ireland and the United Kingdom sweltered under a heatwave on July 20,
2021. For the first time ever, Britain’s Met Office issued an extreme
weather warning as temperatures were expected to reach 33˚C (91.4 F) by
the end of the week. The Irish National Meteorological Service, Met
Éireann, also issued warnings for high temperatures on that same day.
Cavan, Monaghan, south Leitrim, Roscommon, Longford, and Westmeath were
under a Status Orange and most of the rest of the country was under a
Status Yellow. Status Orange is the second-highest warning level, with
Status Red higher and Status Yellow lower.
The Met Office reported that the highest temperature of the year on the
island of Ireland was reached on July 21, with the reading of 31.3˚C
(88.4˚F) at Castlederg, County Tyrone. Ireland was not far behind, with
highs of 30.7˚C (87.3˚F) in County Roscommon, according to Met Éireann.
London’s Heathrow Airport carried the high-temperature torch for the
United Kingdom, spiking to 32.2˚C (90˚F) on July 20.
While these temperatures are not as stunning, in hard numbers, as other
heatwaves this summer, such as the 121˚F (49.4˚C) reported in Lytton,
Canada in late June of this year, they are indeed stifling for these
island nations that typically have more mild summer weather. For
example, according to Weather Underground, the average high temperature
on July 20 for London Heathrow Airport is 23.3˚C (74˚F), meaning that
the heatwave high was 8.9˚C (16˚F) higher than average. Ireland’s
average temperatures tend to be even cooler. The Ireland West Airport
Knock Station, which is the closest weather station to Roscommon,
reports an average high temperature of 18.3˚C (65˚F) on July 21—so that
day’s high was 12.4˚F (22.3˚F) higher than average.
The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board
NASA’s Terra satellite acquired a true-color image of Ireland and the
United Kingdom as they sizzle on a hot, humid day. Small streaks of
cloud provides some meager shade across parts of England. Heavier cloud
cover hangs over far Northern Ireland and the tip of Scotland.
Image Facts
Satellite: Terra
Date Acquired: 7/20/2021
Resolutions: 1km (1.4 MB), 500m (3.8 MB), 250m (2.9 MB)
Bands Used: 1,4,3
Image Credit: MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA GSFC
https://modis.gsfc.nasa.gov/gallery/individual.php?db_date=2021-07-23
--- up 11 weeks, 12 hours, 15 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (1:317/3)